Having Better and More Mindful Conversations During the Holiday Season

The Holiday Season can be so hard for many. Unfortunately, depression, stress, and anxiety rates are higher during these few weeks than at any other time. And with that in mind, I want to share a few ways to have more mindful conversations with your teams, friends, and colleagues.

Content warning: I don’t go into detail, but I speak about physical pain and illnesses, depression, anxiety, substance misuse, and suicidal ideation in this article.

Please, skip this post if any of these topics causes you pain, discomfort, or uncomfortable feelings. I’m happy that you’re here, and please, stay safe, warm, and well.

We are all hire-wired to ask, “how are you?” when we open a conversation with someone. Sometimes, we might even say things like “Did you have fun this weekend?” or “Are you ok?” without really thinking about what that question might mean for the other person.

When we ask those questions without thinking about their impact, we might be causing unexpected pain to someone else, even when we don’t mean it.